Holmes_and_Watson

Stake

Willow

3 minutes ago, Harry_SFC said:

Obviously they won't all stay as we'll have to raise some funds but we really could have one hell of a team for this division with this set up. As you say, full backs providing the width and two decent holding players to cover.

Example (4-3-1-2)

Ramsdale, Sugawara, THB, Edwards, Welington, Downes, Charles, Fernandes, Dibling, Archer, Downs/Stewart. 

Yup. A team like that. In a lower division. I don't want to get carried away. But they might get more than the 12 points most of them amassed last season. 🙂

3 hours ago, Farmer Saint said:

I'm not being funny, I have consistently berated Netanyahu, his cronies and the IDF, and not once have I been accused of anti-Semitism on here, or in public.

2 hours ago, whelk said:

In his head the forum is littered with far right Muslim hating nazis ie anyone who doesn’t share his view on anything

That. And also SOG never being able to separate the Israeli government from Jewish people in his attacks, believing in a hierarchy of racism where he said it's only anti semitism when you mention the holocaust, saying that the hostages were safer with Hamas than with the IDF and trying to score points when civilians were killed on a safe route.

We also have a thread where his views went right past the extremes of Palestinian supporters in this country, past Palestinian activists and past Palestinian politicians who apologised for saying things SOG agreed with. 

That's just off the top of my head, and they aren't things I'm trying to remember. A "poor me" or a post completely ignoring points people have been saying to him for years, should have the context of his history here.

3 hours ago, Doctoroncall said:

Do you know what they were doing to over practice the penalties?  Seems bizarre as generally practice is good, perhaps they didn’t create the right conditions, have some risks from taking a penalty?

As a nation, they feel they've underachieved for 15 years, and pen shootouts haven't gone their way

Euros 2013:Lost pen shootout to Denmark

World Cup 2015: Lost pen shootout to Germany

World Cup 2023: Lost pen shootout to Australia

That last one is the key one here. That was under the current manager, and they had drilled for penalties in training. It took 20 pens for Australia to win 7-6.

Note that going in to this tournament, Bonadei has emphasised his refusal to do the same things to get the same results. That applied not only to dropping some experience, but to his approach to penalties.

"We worked a lot on (penalties) before the 2023 World Cup in a specific way, and this time, I preferred not to overload them with this too much, because we don't know how it happens," Bonadei told reporters.

"Last night, we saw players who were really under pressure. And, yes, you can actually put them under pressure during the training, but it's not the same as during the game. When it's the game, when they are tired, when there's a pressure of the audience, maybe it can be completely different.

"The players do it in an individual way with their own pace at the end of every session, sometimes they try two, three, four, or five penalties, but it's very difficult to recreate the context of the game."

It might not replicate game pressure, but repeatedly putting pens right in the bottom or top corner, does make you better at doing it when you need to.

29 minutes ago, rallyboy said:

France picked a side lacking experience, they had no Plan B for breaking down a resolute defence and they didn't bother to practice penalties.

Au revoir.

There weren't many corners. But Renard never needed many to cause chaos. Malard was as close to a target as their thinking got, and she didn't disrupt their defence.

It was odd to hear that because they felt they over practiced penalties before, they didn't insist on practicing this time. It was left to individual choice after training. 

14 hours ago, aintforever said:

Are we allowed to compare them to Nazis now or is that still antisemitic?

It would still be antisemitic. 

Coat

Always harsh to go out on penalties, but Germany fought really hard to get to that.

Berger's water bottle got shown again. ITV said they'd "analysed it." And the information on it, proved accurate enough. Not the sort of thing to show, if it can get communicated to a bench. Presumably, it didn't make it onto the big screen. If it did, and France stuck to it, then silly them.

Germany had worked so hard, that their subs struggled to match the intensity. France have plenty of top players, and will regret no putting more direct, physical pressure on the German backline. It's something Sweden do well, and they could have learned from.

Speaking of learning, a lot more penalties aimed higher, to good effect.

As a postscript to this one, no doubt the French manager will get stick for the players he dropped. I recall reading one is just waiting to tell her story.

Malard hit the bar with seconds left. That would have been harsh. Germany worked so hard to get to pens. France just didn't have a way of getting through.

Earlier, the camera showed Berger's water bottle with faces and likely penalty spots. Really shouldn't be doing that.

5 minutes ago, Dr Who? said:

What a save, by Berger! 

She's having a good game, with good positioning, but also using that experience to relieve the pressure.

Hoffman must have been tired, but I was still surprised Germany took her off. She was key on the occasions did get the ball up the park. Even Brand was racing back to make important tackles at the end of that first half of extra time.

Ten woman Germany frustrating France, and into extra time. Germany had a penalty saved, that would have won it for them. At the time, I was thinking that, even if they scored France would get level. But they have done really well at the back. France did put the ball in the net, but VAR made the right call.

When Cascanino wasn't enough to stretch the play, they brought on Baltimore. But the Germans countered that. Cascanino then went off to bring in a more central threat in Malard. But Germany happier to be compact in the middle.

France still have that numerical advantage. But Brand is capable of creating, and there's always pens.

9 minutes ago, SWLondon Saint said:

Wow, looks like Cap'n Jack has been busier than we thought with his defensive coaching masterclasses on how to hair pull in the age of VAR...

Somehow, the French player stayed on her feet, and just put out her arms in exasperation at the hair pull. Contrast with screaming man-child Cucurella rolling about. 

A women's football selling point, as discussed above.

3 hours ago, Turkish said:

.Ive called them and since been into our local branch to complain and no could explain what the £90 additional increase was for

"Pet surcharge? Ma'am, when I said I was the Forum Lion, I didn't mean I was actually a lion...no, I do not want to travel in a crate in the hold.!" 🙂

11 hours ago, gio1saints said:

@Holmes_and_Watson did you ever  read editions of a magazine /comic entitled “ MAD” by any chance? Or even contribute to it writing for them? Probably back in the seventies? Your dry, occasionally disturbing humour reminds of that style. You have a knack of making even the banal sound, well, mad, and it’s usually well constructed comedy prose as well ( as long as you don’t mention the footballing stuff, nobody can make that funny). Unlike some who I shall not mention by name you are obviously made of superior humoured mental mettle. Think it’d be called dry humour sometimes verging on the side of sick occasionally the weird or tangentially mental but often very accurate in a cruel to be kind of way. 
Please do carry on posting. Think it’s worth the £5 just to read some of your stuff. But then there are others who are worth the entrance money also I hasten to add. @trousers is one - I always enjoy reading his nice pieces and seeing him agreeing with everyone on everything makes me believe that World Peace is, truly, possible. 🙏

There you go folks! Gio would pay a fiver for my posts! Who will give me £10? Thank you madam! That's £10. Now, who...sorry madam? Oh, it was £10 to stop.....oh, well...SOLD!

1 hour ago, BarryVenisonsHair said:

Just seen Carsten Jancker in Forbidden Planet. Here we go. 

My favourite scene is when Jancker challenges the creature to a penalty shoot out, to allow the ship to escape.

Bag

1 hour ago, Stripey McStripe Shirt said:

I wish we were more like Huddersfield and Stoke.

I heard you were changing your username, to Stripey McStripe On Both Sides Shirt, in protest. 🙂

Spain deserved winners against the hosts, Switzerland. A game where the 23rd seed played with one up. They tried to keep it as compact as possible to limit Spain's passing.  Spain had missed a penalty, and had a couple over the bar, but it mostly worked in frustrating them. It wasn't until the 66th minute that  Spain went ahead.

Spain's second goal had another moment of misfortune to it. The Swiss captain, Walti, didn't run into the ref. But the official was close enough that she changed her mind on where she was looking to pass the ball. The result was that she turned into a challenge. While she stopped, for a non existent foul, having given the ball away. Spain shot from outside the box and it was in. Walti's poor touch, at the other end, shortly after, only got her a yellow card, with that goal still on her mind.

Spain also managed to miss a second penalty, while the Swiss never really got to make a final push. Pilgrim made a difference for them as a sub. But she was still a lone outlet. The closing minutes consisted of Spanish possession, while the Swiss racked up an impressive tally of yellow cards to go with some late challenges. They got a straight red just before the end, when Maritza brought down Paralluelo, preventing a 1 on 1 with the keeper.

Spain are better in possession, patience and passing than England. But they also got frustrated against a tight defence. Unlike England, who have direct outlets in Hemp and Bronze as starters, with Kelly and Agyemang, as subs, Spain often looked to pass through where there was no space. Parallueo offered more of a target, when she came on. They also looked vulnerable to direct runs through the centre. Just part of them keeping a high line, and anticipating breaks down their flanks. 

2 minutes ago, benjii said:

It was hilariously good.

And in response I posted Schopenhauer's mother's withering critique of her son, which was apposite indeed.

Your posts will have, once again, proved to have been too refined for the jealous overlords of SaintsWeb, prompting their removal.

Incidentally, Mrs Schopenhauer disowned her other son, MLG, for being "an utter bellend," and thought Arthur was an, admittedly flawed, improvement.

Loot

23 minutes ago, CB Fry said:

Either way you are a fucking bellend

Looks like the matrix stepped in, to remove whatever the source of that was. But we are left with this entirely factual characterisation of MLG.

6 hours ago, gio1saints said:

I don’t disagree. Facts are facts.
 

But how the fact of that “unbeaten run” and promotion first time of asking after a miserable relegation the year before has been converted into something to ridicule the club and RM - and some of his players over - is something I struggle to understand. We’ve had two terrible years interleaved with a year in which we actually played some great football and won a bunch of games. But it’s like it’s been airbrushed out of our history because of the anger of how bad we were the two years before and after. A bit of perspective. And @trousers yeah being pragmatic is not the same as by default continuing to support glass half empty posts. Just a gentle idea but try thinking for yourself instead of selecting what you think will be the most popular line. You are perfectly capable of doing so when your need to be popular ( and my goodness you certainly ARE v popular ) urges have not overtaken you. 🤣

 

 

I get on well with my local law enforcement. Yet here I am, stuck in a cell, for innocently saying I was off to a meeting of the very popular @trousers club. "Like a glass half empty or full," I said, "sometimes the @trousers club is up, but a lot of the time they're down.." That seems to have concerned them more.

Without a Friday night VA game, I can only hope a life changing post of positive thinking appears.

9 hours ago, gio1saints said:

Classic English putting people down attitude very prevalent here unfortunately. 
I don’t know what’s better - conceding 60 goals and getting promoted or conceding 60 and not getting promoted. Better still going on a record unbeaten run and promoted or not going on a record breaking run and not promoted? 

The glass for many Saints fans seems often to be half empty. Instead of being so God- awful miserable and looking for scapegoats most or all the time you do know you can choose NOT to look on the dark side for once? Choose NOT to revel in the cynicism like pigs in shit? 

Amazing things can start to happen. You become more grateful for ever smaller things in life. You can become  happier and at ease, less restless and permanent-angry. Saints results even player performances don’t even matter so much after a while - you enjoy a sense of community with no expectations. 
You can decide now : This season I will enjoy watching the team! Just repeat five times daily morning and night and should all be fixed in a month or two. 

Crumbs! That was handy!

That sounds like the bit in Scooged, where Bill Murray talks about giving up being a cynical, grumpy, sarcastic pain. Y'know, all the stuff I'm good at. And instead become a giving, warm, caring person who looks out selflessly for others, every day. Like, for nothing.

Well, Mr Murray. You've not been scarred by possession football for a season and a bit! Opening yourself up to that, just leads to being in the PL gutter, hoping some other idiot, sorry selfless, well meaning soul, will take away your baggage (ABK, Fraser, Baz etc), so you can rise to your feet again.

Which brings me back to @trousers club. It might be really popular, but I was on my way there to say I found Bill Murray avatars triggering, in every post, all thanks to that misplaced, and frankly wrong, speech in Scrooged. Oh, the irony. Not just a concept to be mangled by Canadian singers.

2 hours ago, saintant said:

We're already hearing that the players are being worked much harder than they were last preseason. Along with many I questioned our fitness levels all last season. To fall short on such a key issue is indefensible and should never have been allowed to happen. We were always going to struggle but, if you don't even match a basic like fitness, you are on a hiding to nothing and it showed. Down to RM in my book and he'll need to do better with the Ranger's squad or the Jocks will show him what stick from your own fans is really all about.

The glass isn't so much half empty or half full, but broken against a table and coming towards your face. 🙂

6 hours ago, Gloucester Saint said:

Boris has left himself go since leaving office

My first thought was that Boris had tidied himself up, since leaving office. 🙂